The 99th Divorce

“Let’s go in together.” Ou Ming pulled her with him as he walked over to the bathtub.

Yu Lili flung his hand off violently and said, “Let me take off my coat.”

Ou Ming released her when he heard that. Unexpectedly, the moment he released her, she turned and walked out, closing the door to the bathroom firmly behind her. He obediently sat himself down in the bathtub. He splashed some water on his body, waiting for Yu Lili to re-enter and join him.

For some unknown reason, a few minutes passed. Yu Lili didn’t seem to have any intention of coming back in.

“Yu! What are you doing?” Ou Ming called out.

Outside the bathroom, Yu Lili heard Ou Ming’s voice, but had no intention of replying to him. Instead, she picked up her cell phone and sent Ye Qianqian a text message.

Ou Ming waited for another few minutes and started to become restless. It went without saying that Yu Lili was probably upset.

Have I done something to upset her? Was it what I did while she was on the phone? Or, was it because I asked her to undress me? Or, could it be because I asked her to bathe with me?

He had no idea. The water in the tub was beginning to get cold. Ou Ming had no choice but to bear with the pain and clean himself up with one hand. The other hand couldn’t come in contact with water. Since he had kept it raised, it was beginning to ache.

In the midst of the grind, another few minutes passed. Ou Ming finally called out, “Yu Lili, I was wrong.”

Yu Lili heard him from outside the bathroom. Her fingers paused in the middle of sending a text message. The anger that had arisen in her moments ago had begun to ebb off slowly.

She gave Ye Qianqian a heads-up, set her phone to charge by the side, and made her way to the bathroom. She opened the bathroom door and went in.

Yu Lili saw Ou Ming seated inside the bathtub. His head, neck, and body were covered in bubbles. Upon hearing her enter, he opened his closed eyes. His face creased in a smile.

Keeping one hand above the water, Ou Ming used his other hand to push his hair back. When he saw her coming over, he closed his eyes once again.

“My eyes are stinging. Help me,” Ou Ming’s voice carried with it a hint of bitterness and complaint. It sounded very much like he was throwing a tantrum.

Yu Lili kept her face expressionless as she went over. She reached out and took the showerhead in her hand and turned to spray water all over Ou Ming’s face.

“Stand up.” Yu Lili held on to his hand and pulled him up and out.

The bathtub was slippery. When Ou Ming stepped out, he deliberately fell onto her.

Yu Lili pushed him up, “Walk properly! Otherwise, you can wash up on your own!”

Ou Ming straightened up immediately and walked out, completely at Yu Lili’s mercy.

“Hold this. I’ll help you to scrub your scalp.” Yu Lili shoved the showerhead into Ou Ming’s hand. “Don’t you dare get me wet. I don’t have a change of clothes. Otherwise, you can forget about going back to Kingstown tomorrow.”

That warning alone was enough to push all of Ou Ming’s mischievous thoughts out of his mind. Surprising even himself, he obediently stood still as Yu Lili helped him shower.

Wrapped in a towel and brought to the bedside, Ou Ming finally looked up to gauge Yu Lili’s mood. Her mood seemed a little better, but he could tell that she was still upset.

“What’s wrong? In a bad mood?” Ou Ming asked gently, as he nudged her with his hand.

Yu Lili pressed her lips together. “Ou Ming, can you please show me some respect?”

Ou Ming was bewildered when he heard her reply. “I don’t show you any respect?”